Calgarians kept up their tradition of Earth Hour indifference Saturday, as millions of people around the globe shut off their lights to raise awareness about climate change and energy sustainability.

Figures provided by Enmax show there was no identifiable change in power use in Calgary between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, when people were encouraged to turn off all non-essential power as part of a global initiative to reduce energy consumption.

“It’s very disappointing, considering it’s a global event,” said Judi Vandenbrink, organizer of an Earth Hour event held this year at the Bridgeland-Riverside Community Centre. “Some cities go to such extremes to participate and yet Calgary hasn’t shown any interest.”

The event’s minimal impact here could be attributed to the fact only 30 per cent of Calgary’s energy demand comes from residential customers, while 70 per cent is consumed by commercial and industrial customers, according to Enmax.

Calgary’s average daily peak demand is just over 1,300 megawatts, while an average Saturday night is about 1,110 MW.

The World Wildlife Fund, the driving force behind Earth Hour, said 13 million Canadians turned off their lights for an hour last year in the symbolic event. While an official 2013 tally was not immediately available, Nova Scotia Power reported a drop of five megawatts on Saturday evening, while the Independent Electricity System Operator — which co-ordinates Ontario’s electricity needs — said there was a 2.7 per cent drop in demand in Canada’s largest province during Earth Hour.

Edmonton’s power use dropped slightly from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturday night — from 950.10 megawatts the same time last week to 921.37 megawatts. But an Epcor spokesperson said it’s normal to see a variation of plus or minus 10 per cent when comparing consumption rates week over week.

“I’m not passionate about Earth Hour directly as much as the need to reduce energy consumption on a daily basis,” Wigmore said.

“We need to turn off lights and unplug electricity when not in use. Changing daily habits will lead to lasting results.... And commercial and industry users need to step up and reduce energy consumption, too.”

For the past several years, Calgary’s energy demand has barely budged during Earth Hour. In 2008, energy consumption in Calgary famously spiked by 3.6 per cent — though many blamed a Calgary Flames home game and cold weather for the increase.

While some Calgarians used social media to express disappointment with the city’s showing Saturday, a small handful took a contrary stance and joked about turning on all their appliances during Earth Hour. Calgary-born conservative commentator Ezra Levant tweeted that he was “very proud” of the city’s Earth Hour results. When asked to elaborate, he tweeted, “Calgary loves energy, and isn’t ashamed of it.”

With files from the Edmonton Journal, the Canadian Press

astephenson@calgaryherald.com

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